Tour de France | Cyclingnews.com The 2016 Cyclingnews end of year quiz Tour de France 2017 Race Overview The 2017 Tour de France starts in Germany for the first time since its 1987 West German Grand Depart. A 13km time trial opens the race in Düsseldorf with stage 2 to also start in the German city. The Tour de France hub page is packed with news, 21 stage previews, analysis, photos, and rider interviews ahead of the 2017 edition of the race. Chris Froome (Team Sky) is set to return to defend his 2016 title. The British rider will be aiming for his fourth Tour de France title. Nairo Quintana (Movistar), Richie Porte (BMC Racing), and Alberto Contador (Tinkoff) are expected to challenge.

Tour de France 2017 route Stage 1, Saturday, July 1: Dusseldorf - Dusseldorf (ITT), 13km Stage 2, Sunday, July 2: Dusseldorf – Liege, 202km Stage 3, Monday, July 3: Verviers – Longwy, 202km Stage 4, Tuesday, July 4: Mondorf-Les-Bains – Vittel, 203km Stage 5, Wednesday, July 5: Vittel – Planche des Belles Filles, 160km Stage 6, Thursday, July 6: Vesoul – Troyes, 216km Stage 7, Friday, July 7:Troyes – Nuit-Saint-Georges, 214km Stage 8.

Saturday, July 8: Dole – Station des Tousses, 187km Stage 9, Sunday, July 9: Nantua – Chambery, 181km Rest day 1, Monday, July 10 Stage 10, Tuesday, July 11: Perigueux – Bergerac, 178km Stage 11, Wednesday, July 12: Eymet – Pau, 202km Stage 12, Thursday, July 13: Pau – Peyragudes, 214km Stage 13, Friday, July 14: Saint-Girons – Foix, 100km Stage 14, Saturday, July 15: Blagnac – Rodez, 181km Stage 15, Sunday, July 16: Laissac-Severac L’Eglise – Le Puy-en-Velay Rest day 2, Monday, July 17 Stage 16, Tuesday, July 18: Le Puy-en-Velay – Romans-Sur-Isere, 165km Stage 17, Wednesday, July 

19: La Mure – Serre-Chevalier, 183km Stage 18, Thursday, July 20: Briancon – Izoard, 178km Stage 19, Friday, July 21: Embrun – Salon-de-Provence, 220km Stage 20, Saturday, July 22: Marseille – Marseille (ITT), 23km Stage 21, Sunday, July 23: Montgeron – Paris Champs Elysees, 105km Tour de France race route map Who Won Tour de France 2015?

— See This Year’s Winner - Hollywood Life 10 Photos And that’s it! 23 days after it started, Chris Froome has earned a stunning victory in the 2015 Tour de France, beating hundreds of riders to the finishing line with an energetic sprint at the Champs-Elysees in Paris, France. Good effort, sir! Chris Froome , 30, won the 2015 Tour de France, the 102nd edition of the prestigious cycling race, on July 26 to go down in cycling folklore in what has been a thrilling ride this year. Congrats again to Chris! Vroome, Vroome! Chris nabbed his second Tour de France title on July 26 after an exhilarating race. The short 21st stage, which is a relentless sprint around the center of Paris, was expected to be a formality for Chris, who only had to cross the finish line within 72 seconds of his competitor to win the race. A staggering 198 riders from 22 teams entered the 21-stage, 2,088 mile race — in what is a real test of endurance.

So it’s only fair that the best man won! Watch a video of Chris during the race. Chris Froome Becomes First Brit To Win Tour De France Twice Going into the final stage, Chris Froome was attempting to become the first British rider to win the Tour de France twice. He led Nairo Quintana by 2 minutes and 38 seconds on the penultimate day after surviving an attack by the Colombian cyclist on Alpe D’Huez during the 20th stage, in what was deemed the deciding day between these two great rivals. But for Chris, who last lifted the trophy in 2013, it hasn’t been smooth sailing. During stage 19 on July 24, he lashed out at spectators after he was allegedly spat at. Chris also claimed that he had urine thrown at him during stage 14, after it was reported that he used performance-enhancing drugs during this year’s competition. What do you think, HollywoodLifers? Is Chris a worthy winner? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

— Jon Boon Chris Froome wins 2015 Tour de France - SBNation.com Chris Froome wins 2015 Tour de France Rec Following Sunday's neutralized finish in Paris, it's official: Chris Froome will be the winner of the 2015 Tour de France. Froome has now won the Grande Boucle twice in three years, missing a potential three-peat when he was forced to abandon in 2014. He is well on his way to being considered a legend of his sport, especially after beating a field that was as strong as any of recent memory. The 2015 Tour featured four five-star favorites: Froome, 2014 winner Vincenzo Nibali, Giro d'Italia winner Alberto Contador and Colombian phenom Nairo Quintana. He weathered nearly every attack his rivals launched over three weeks, finishing with a winning margin of 1:12 over Quintana. Froome held the yellow jersey on Stage 4, then regained it from Stage 7 onward after briefly losing it to Tony Martin. His signature attack was a furious climb up La Pierre-St.

Martin on Stage 10, during which he opened his lead from 12 seconds to 2:52 over Tejay Van Garderen. From that point onward, Froome was a marked man, but any attacks against him fell short. Froome himself was magnificent, of course, but so was Team Sky. During the Stage 12 climb up to Plateau de Beille, Richie Porte and Geraint Thomas successfully closed gap after gap with Froome in tow, allowing Froome to then attack on his own in a show of force to his rivals, ultimately forcing a stalemate. The next decisive days came at the very end of the Tour in the Alps. On Stage 19, Froome was perhaps truly vulnerable for the first time, losing his lieutenants to the early climbs and being forced to fend off every offensive himself. Nibali attacked him to win the stage when Froome had a mechanical issue, and Quintana was able to wrest 30 seconds away on the general classification, but Froome was still in strong position heading into the Stage 20 climb up Alpe d'Huez, 2:38 ahead of second-place Quintana. The final day of climbing was another hard one.

Quintana attacked relentlessly on the Alps, but a better-protected Froome was able to remain defensive, matching Quintana until six kilometers remained in the stage when the Colombian was able to pull free and take another 1:22 out of Froome's lead. Quintana's climb was magnificent, but it was no match for the well-laid plans of Sky and Froome. With the increased profile should come more pressure on Froome. As a potential dynastic Tour winner in the post-Lance Armstrong era, he'll face doping accusations, substantiated or not. Little can be done about the roadside crowd, which may continue to spit, throw urine and yell dopé at every winner until such a time when testing can guarantee that every rider is clean. As long as Froome can grin and bear the vitriol, however, he should continue to dazzle at the Tour for as long as we can foresee. General classification (yellow jersey) standings Name Who will win the Tour de France in 2015? - Quora Quora Sports Who will win the Tour de France in 2015? The month of July is fast approaching.

Froome is looking to amend his wipeout from last year, whilst Nibali will do his best to defend his title. Contador will have a strong chance to double up from the Giro and Nairo Quintana may just be the first Colombian to take a victory in the lap of France. Who will win, be on the podium, and which smoky will rise in the Alps? The conventional wisdom as I write this answer (on 23 June 2015) is that the winner will be one of these four riders: Alberto Contador (Tinkoff-Saxo) Nairo Quintana (Movistar) Chris Froome (Sky) That much is probably correct. But I'm going to go against the conventional wisdom and rank their probability of success in that order. The argument being made against Contador is that he won't have enough strength left after winning the Giro. But winning the Tour de France isn't just about strength (or climbing ability); it's also about experience and knowing when to attack. No one in the current peloton has ridden as many Grand Tours as successfully as Contador. He knows how to ride them; he know how to win them.

And he's been planning a run at the Giro-Tour double all year. One example of his tactical understanding came from Stage 3 (the 'Queen" stage) at the just-completed Route de Sud. Contador attacked on the Port de Bales, and Quintana went with him. They finished the climb together. But then Contador attacked again, on the descent. He won the stage by 18 seconds, which gave him enough of a cushion to win the overall. It was that stage that convinced me that he's ready to go on and become the first person in the 21st century to win the Giro and Tour in the same year. In some ways, Nibali is similar to Contador. He may not have quite as much experience, but he clearly knows how to win Grand Tours. After all, only six riders in history have won all three Grand Tours during their careers -- and two of those six riders are Contador and Nibali. He's not quite as good a climber, but he's a great bike handler, and this gives him the opportunity to attack in places where the other GC contenders can't always go with him.

I expect him to attack on the cobbled stage this year the same way he did last year. And he'll look for another stage like last year's Stage 2 into Sheffield where he can surprise everybody. Like Contador, he can attack on the descents, which will put both Quintana and Froome into difficulty. Quintana can climb, which always gives him a chance of winning a Grand Tour. But it's not clear what else he can do. That means he'll always have a better chance at the Giro or the Vuelta than at the Tour de France. This year, at least, there's less time trialing, which will be good for him. And I'm not convinced that the Movistar team is as strong as the other three contenders. That will depend in part on how committed Valverde will be to the role of super-domestique, but I think he'd much rather be "Plan B". They'll have Izaguirre and Anacona and Gadret, but that 's not going to be the same as Tinkoff-Saxo having Basso, Kiserlovski, Kreuziger, Majka, and Rogers to support Contador.

As for Froome, my main hesitation is that Team Sky doesn't look as formidable as they did in the back-to-back years when they won the Tour with Wiggins and Froome. In both of those years, they dominated stage races from the early Tours of Qatar and Oman straight through the Dauphine and on to the Tour. This year, not so much. I thought Froome struggled in the Dauphine; he had trouble on a couple of stages staying with Tejay Van Garderen, and only won the overall by the bonus seconds on the final stage. But, on the other hand, he'll have tremendous team support with (presumably) Konig, Nieve, Roche, and Thomas. And maybe Henao and Porte. In Froome's case, however, less time trial kilometers is not to his advantage. Finally, here are a few dark horse candidates. They're unlikely to actually win the Tour (unless something happens to all four of the main contenders), but they'll make a run at the top five or top ten: Lotto NL-Jumbo will be sending Gesink and Kelderman, supported by Kruijswijk and Ten Dam.

That's enough firepower to be certian of a top ten finisher, and to have a chance at the top five. AG2R has Romain Bardet and Jean-Christophe Peraud, and FDJ has Thibaut Pinot. But neither team has enough depth to win the yellow jersey. And getting onto the podium this year will be hard. The same holds for Matthias Franck at IAM Cycling, Dani Navarro at Cofidis, Warren Barguil at Giant-Alpecin, Bauke Mollema at Trek, Louis Meintjes at MTN-Qhubeka, and the Yates twins at Orica-GREENedge. The announcers on NBCSN will continue to hype Tejay Van Garderen and Andrew Talansky as the great American hopes. Don't hold your breath.... Finally, keep your eyes on Julian Alaphilippe from Etixx-Quickstep and Romain Sicard of Europcar.

444 Views · View Upvotes · Answer requested by Quora User Tour de France 2015: stage 17 won by Simon Geschke – as it happened | Sport | The Guardian Tour de France 2015 Tour de France 2015: stage 17 won by Simon Geschke – as it happened The German rider completed a solo break to claim his first Tour stage victory as Chris Froome maintained his overall lead from Nairo Quintana Updated Wednesday 22 July 2015 11.29 EDT First published on Wednesday 22 July 2015 07.00 EDT 11:29 The German Giant-Alpecin rider, Simon Geschke, claimed stage 17 with a brave solo break and earned his first Tour de France stage. Chris Froome had a clear plan which he carried out to the letter, responding to Nairo Quintana’s attacks to cross the line with the Colombian and maintain his overall lead. That’s all from me, but click here for the report from today’s stage and come along tomorrow for stage 18 from Gap to Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne. Bye!

Updated 11:22 General classification after stage 17 Contador’s struggles have dropped him down to fifth below Geraint Thomas, while Mathias Frank’s commitment to the early breakaway has lifted him into the top ten: 1 Christopher Froome (GBr) Team Sky 69:06:49 2 Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar Team +03:10 3 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar Team +04:09 4 Geraint Thomas (GBr) Team Sky +06:34 5 Alberto Contador (Spa) Tinkoff-Saxo +06:40 6 Robert Gesink (Ned) Team LottoNL-Jumbo +07:39 7 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team +08:04 8 Mathias Frank (Swi) IAM Cycling +08:47 9 Bauke Mollema (Ned) Trek Factory Racing +11:47 10 Warren Barguil (Fra) Team Giant-Alpecin +13:08 Updated 2.

Andrew Talansky, at 0.32 3. Rigoberto Uran, at 1.01 4. Thibaut Pinot, at 1.36 5. Mathias Frank, at 1.40 The cameras are back on our yellow jersey super-group. Froome, Nibali, Quintana and Valverde work their way towards Pra Loup with Contador well behind them. Updated Andrew Talansky crosses the line shortly afterwards and Rigoberto Uran is not far behind him. A little battered and bruised, Thibaut Pinot eventually gets there too. Updated 11:07 Simon Geschke wins stage 17! Geschke sees the finish and jumps up out of his saddle to drive forwards as a thick layer of fans either side cheer him home. It’s hard to tell if he’s smiling or gritting his teeth. The 29-year-old takes the final bend, glances back and allows himself a fist pump: Geschke grabs the biggest win of his career! Simon Geschke celebrates as he crosses the finish line.

Photograph: Peter Dejong/AP Updated 11:02 2km to go Geschke still leads and the diminutive Giant-Alpecin rider is closing on his first Tour stage win as the road flattens out... 11:00 Talansky has reeled in Geschke a little and has cut the gap to within a minute, but only 3km remain of this 7% climb. The German stands in his saddle and drives forwards for the stage win. Back down the road the yellow jersey group of Valverde, Quintana and Nibali remain together. Updated 10:56 Geschke is still out in front with 4km to go and his lead is a solid one of still around 1min 30sec. The German has put himself in a fantastic position to claim this stage. Behind him Talansky and Uran continue to chug away but aren’t making inroads. This is where Eddy Merckx’s Tour de France reign came to an end 40 years ago.

In 1975 he the Belgian suddenly ran out of steam on this final climb into Pra-Loup and Bernard Thévenet beat him to the stage win by nearly two minutes, and take the yellow jersey from his rival. After claiming five of the previous six Tours, Merckx’s reign had ended. Merckx would later cite the effect of a medicine he had taken to treat bruising from a spectator’s infamous stomach-punch the previous day. Merckx punched in the stomach. Updated In the yellow jersey group of four, Nibali leads Froome, followed by Valverde and Quintana: Le Tour de France (@letour) 10:47 10km to go At the front, Pinot’s crash has allowed him to be caught up by Telanksy, who is 1min 36sec down on the current leader, Geschke. Uran now passes Pinot too and I think the crash has taken his confidence away. Back in the yellow jersey group, Nibali leads the descent with Froome, Quintana, Valverde and Porte as they sweep left and right using every bit edge of road like a Formula One car.

10:43 Quintana attacks on the ascent and Froome, Nibali, Contador and Valverde stay with him. What a little power-group this is. And Team Sky’s tactics have worked, as Richie Porte drops back to join Froome, having earlier gone with the breakaway. 10:40 Pinot goes down! The FDJ rider swings round a tight left-hander but seems to have it under control before his back wheel suddenly goes from under him. He’s alright and hops back on his bike, but will have lost a chunk of time to Geschke ahead, and a chunk of confidence too. Pinot goes down Photograph: ./ITV4 Updated 10:38 Nibali and Scarponi (Astana) jump to the front of the yellow jersey group to kick up the pace, and only around 11 riders left in there including Froome, Contador, Valverde and Quintana. Paul Thompson emails: “Thanks for the updates. When was the last time a bearded rider one a stage? I don’t think I’ve ever seen it.

No goatees or stubble, of course.” 10:34 Behind Pinot, Rigoberto Uran has brought himself into contention for the stage win, joining Kruijswijk, Telanksy, Yates and Frank in the chase. Geschke takes the KoM points at the top of the climb and begins a very technical descent. The expected rain hasn’t materialised, yet. 10:33 Geschke’s lead is being swallowed by Pinot as they reach the summit, now down to only 1min 10sec. If you were wondering where Froome is amongst all this, he and his main GC rivals remain in a steady group around 11 minutes back down the road. 10:30 In this helter-skelter stage the pack shuffles again. Kruijswijk, Telanksy, Pinot, Yates and Frank form the closest chasing group to the lone leader, Geschke. But Pinot breaks rank and he’s now alone around 1min 25sec down on the German leader.

Lotto Soudal (@Lotto_Soudal) #TDF2015 Pinot is the only chaser for the moment at 1'30". Frank, Talansky, A. Yates and Kruiswijk are a few seconds behind him. 24km to go. 10:24 Mathias Frank kicks on from the chasers as he tries to bridge the gap to Geschke. Ten minutes behind them, the GC contenders stay together in one pack led by Sky. Adrien Dunnion emails with an update as to the GC standings with the time gaps as they are: “Mathias Frank up to 6th in provisional GC, getting very close to Thomas’ 5th!” 10:21 Geschke is closing in on the top of the Col d’Allos climb. Zip down, chest out, the German grits his teeth and stands to push himself higher and higher towards the summit (2,250m). He has opened up a lead of more than two minutes from the chasing group of around 16 riders.

Geschke is up out of his saddle, pumping up the mountain at 22km/hr with a scattering of fans clapping him along and Teklehaimanot behind. He has a beard to rival Luca Paolini. Simon Geschke of Germany riding for Team Giant-Alpecin. Photograph: Manuel Blondeau/Corbis 10:06 Daniel Teklehaimanot (MTN) is an excellent climber and shows off as much, pulling up alongside Geschke on the front. A big group of around 25 riders, including Sagan, Uran, Pinot and several other stage-win hopefuls are around 1min 50sec back. The GC contenders are nearly 10min behind the leading duo. Here’s what the riders have left to tackle. Looks a lot easier when presented as a block of cheese. Team Sky (@TeamSky) 36km to go at the #TDF2015 and THIS is what's in store. 28 riders still lead the @TeamSky -controlled peloton.

pic.twitter.com/97j2ECoeML 10:00 The Team Sky-led yellow jersey group have taken their foot off significantly at the start of this category one climb, with 35km to go. They are 8min 28sec down on the leader, Simon Geschke, perhaps settling in for a battle on the ascent to the finish at Pra Loup. 09:54 Geschke rides into the town of Colmars les Alpes on his own with a 50sec lead from two chasers, Herrada and Durasek. Behind them Sagan continues within the original breakaway group which Team Sky’s Porte and Roche have dropped away from, waiting for Froome and the yellow jersey pack to catch up. Colmars, some may remember, was where Australia’s Heinrich Haussler took a solo stage win in 2009. Team Sky rider Geraint Thomas, up close. Photograph: Kim Ludbrook/EPA Updated 09:50 At the front Simon Geschke attacks! The Giant-Alpecin rider fancies taking on the huge category one Col d’Allos solo.

Plenty of emails today on Froome, sorry I can’t use them all. Here is William Fotheringham’s technical take on Froome’s data released by Team Sky: For the climb of La Pierre-Saint-Martin last week – estimated by Kerrison at 15.3km and taking about 41 and a half minutes – the Tour leader climbed with an average power of 414 watts. Kerrison pointed out that the oval chainrings that Sky use can over-measure power by up to 6%, and the figure had not been adjusted for that. With Froome’s race weight at about 67.5kg, and shifting the power figure downwards by that 6%, the physiologist calculated his power to weight ratio at 5.78 watts per kilogram, considerably below the value estimated by the French television station. Froome’s climbing speed, or VAM (Velocità Ascensional Media), was 1602.

Making comparisons using VAM is not an exact science because there are so many variables such as wind direction, gradient – there was a tailwind at Pierre-Saint-Martin and the gradient was apparently conducive to a high VAM; but, even given that, the figure compares favourably with the figure of about 1800 or more attained by top riders during the era when EPO was widely used. Of all the statistics the one that probably helps to explain why Froome went so well on the climb compared with other potential winners was his maximum heart rate of 174 beats per minute. Heart rate varies from person to person so it is a figure that is of interest compared only with an individual’s other readings. Team Sky data shows Chris Froome Tour climb was exceptional but normal Read more Tour de France 2015 | Cyclingnews.com Tour de France 2015 July 4-26, 2015, Utrecht (ITT), France , Road - WorldTour Tour de France menu For Cyclingnews' complete 2016 Tour de France coverage click on the link. Chris Froome (Team Sky) won his second Tour de France with a consistent performance throughout the three-week race.

The 2013 winner took the lead during the stage 10 finish in La Pierre-Saint-Martin and never surrendered the race lead. Nairo Quintana (Movistar) attacked the maillot jaune Chris Froome during the penultimate day on the climb of l'Alpe d'Huez and clawed back 1:20 from the race leader, but he fell 1:38 short of taking the lead. Movistar's Alejandro Valverde kept third, 5:25 down, with 2014 winner Vincezo Nibali (Astana) in fourth at 8:36. Two-time Tour winner Alberto Contador finished fifth this year, 9:48 behind Froome. To subscribe to the Tour de France podcast on iTunes, click here , and go here for our full Tour de France coverage.

Men's Top 10 Tour de France 2017 2017 TOUR DE FRANCE: THE ROAD JUST GOT STEEPER Tuesday, October 18th The course of the 104th Tour de France (1-23 July, 2017), which was unveiled before an audience of almost 4,000 people at the Palais des Congrès in Paris, stands out for its atypical mountain... Read more Chris Froome: «Very curious to discover... Tuesday, October 18th The presentation of the route of the Tour de France immediately gives the favourites of the race an idea of the possible scenarios that they could expect next July. The mountain stages, boasting... Read more Imagine le tour: The visual for the 2017 Tour de... Tuesday, October 18th The 2017 Grande Boucle now has a face: that of a fan, provided by 20-year old Alexis Boulivet, a student in concept art. He has been named the grand winner of Imagine Le Tour, the first design... Read more The way to History Tuesday, October 18th In what order?

Should we start by the Alps or by the Pyrenees? At this period of the year, the questions often concern the way the course of the next Grande Boucle rotates. The Tour actually only... Read more Find out the route of the 2017 Tour de France live... Wednesday, October 12th It has passed by here, will it return again? The charms of the 2017 Tour de France will be revealed in 6 days. Its route, its mountains, its new horizons but also its new face! The official poster... Read more Tour de France: stage 19 – as it happened | Sport | The Guardian Tour de France 2015 Tour de France: stage 19 – as it happened Vincenzo Nibali won the stage and Chris Froome remains in yellow, but Nairo Quintana has reduced his deficit The climb of Alpe d’Huez – interactive! Updated Chris Froome, wearing the overall leader’s yellow jersey, and Spain’s Alejandro Valverde speed down Croix de Fer pass.

Photograph: Christophe Ena/AP Friday 24 July 2015 12.15 EDT First published on Friday 24 July 2015 06.45 EDT 12:15 This may explain Froome's anger ... Some imbecile spectator spat at him as he passed on his way up the what I think ids the final climb. At the yellow jersey presentation, he looks a lot more relaxed than he did when he got off his bike. It’s been a bad day for him, but it could have been a lot worse. Has he got enough in hand to survive the final day in the Alps? Tune in tomorrow to find out. Thanks for your time and your emails, have a great weekend. Race Radio (@TheRaceRadio) General Classification after Stage 19 1. Chris Froome (Britain/Team Sky) 78hr 37min 34sec 2. Nairo Quintana (Colombia/Movistar) +2:38 3. Alejandro Valverde (Spain/Movistar) +5:25 4.

Vincenzo Nibali (Italy/Astana) +6:44 5. Alberto Contador (Spain/Tinkoff-Saxo) +7:56 6. Robert Gesink (Netherlands/LottoNL) +8:55 7. Mathias Frank (Switzerland/IAM Cycling) +12:39 8. Bauke Mollema (Netherlands/Trek) +13:22 9. Romain Bardet (France/AG2R) +14:08 10. Pierre Rolland (France/Europcar) +17:27 Stage 19 - the top 10 1. Vincenzo Nibali (Italy/Astana) 4hr 22min 53sec 2. Nairo Quintana (Colombia/Movistar) +44sec 3. Chris Froome (Britain/Sky) +1min 14sec 4. Thibaut Pinot (France/FDJ) +2min 26sec 5.

Romain Bardet (France/AG2R) 11:59 Chris Froome is very angry ... He dismounts from his bike and unleashes a barbaric yawp - that’s a big show of emotion there and he’s clearly not best pleased by something or other. It’s been his most stressful day on the Tour thus far, which is hardly surprising considering the rate at which he was losing lieutenants from the start of stage. Replays of the attack Nibali launched while he was suffering from a mechanical suggest that the Italian was well aware that Froome was struggling at the time. Naughty Nibbles. 11:56 Thibaut Pinto finished fourth He finished at the same time as Romain Bardet, Sammy Sanchez and other former members of the yellow jersey group. Nibali has shot back up the GC into fourth place ... I think. Froome continues to lead Nairo Quintana by 2min 38sec and the Colombian has one stage in which to make it up. With tomorrow’s climb up Alpe d’Huez, he’ll fancy his chances. Having shown he’s human, the yellow jersey crosses the line 30 seconds behind Nairo Quintana.

Updated 11:50 Nibali wins the stage ... As the stage flattens out at the top, the reigning Tour de France champion wins stage 19 at La Toussuire. Astana’s Nibali punches the air as he crosses the finish line to win the nineteenth stage. Photograph: Stefano Rellandini/Reuters Updated 11:48 Quintana increases his lead ... The Movistar rider now has a lead of more than 20 seconds over Chris Froome on the stage, with a climb up Alpe d’Huez ahead of them tomorrow. Updated 11:47 Quintana looks stronger than Froome For all that, he’s only 16 seconds ahead of the yellow jersey as Froome gets out of his saddle and drives on up the hill towards La Toussuire. 11:45 Nibali passes under the 3-kilometre kite He might not be home and hosed after all, as he’s clearly in discomfort and Nairo Quintana is in hot pursuit. Quintana increases the gap between himself and Froome to 14 seconds.

11:43 Froome is matching Quintana Froome holds the gap between himself and Quintana at 13 seconds. He led the Colombian by 3min 10sec on GC this morning, so he doesn’t have too much to worry about at the moment. 11:42 The gap between Quintana and Froome grows Quintana opens a gap of 13 seconds on Froome, who remains in touch. Meanwhile at the head of the field, Nibali remains 1min 42sec clear of Froome and will win the stage, barring an accident. 11:41 Froome leaves Valverde and Contador behind him ... As he chases down Nairo Quintana, Chris Froome leaves Contador and Valverde in his dust. Quintana has a lead of about 100 metres on Froome as he kicks up the climb with 4.2 kilometres to go. 11:39 Nairo Quintana attacks ... The Colombian takes my advice and jumps off the front of the yellow ersey group and opens a gap of 15 or 20 metres.

With Wout Poels having shot his bolt and dropped away, Froome is on his own and getting no help from Majka, Contador or Valverde. Movistar’s Alexander Nairo Quintana, right, looks to give the yellow jersey Chris Froome, left, a tough time today. Photograph: Yoan Valat/EPA Updated 11:37 God bless Rafal Majka's energy ... He continues to tow the yellow jersey group along, followed by Wout Poels and Chris Froome. Any time you like, Nairo - you might want to muster an attack. The race does ostensibly end tomorrow afternoon, after all. Nibali leads the stage by 2min 12sec. 11:33 Pierre Rolland gets caught ... After his brave efforts earlier today, the French Europcar rider is about to be swallowed by the yellow jersey group. Vincenzo Nibali is the outright leader and he’s 2min 19sec clear of the Froome and co with a mite over seven kilometres to go.

11:31 An act of charity from Movistar While handing out bottles to their riders in the yellow jersey group, the occupants of their team car take pity on BMC rider Sammy Sanchez, who has a thirst that needs slaking and asks if he can have one too. They hand one over to him and anyone else who wants one. 11:28 Nibali passes the 10-kilometre to go kite He’s 2min 18sec clear of the yellow jersey group, where Polish rider Rafal Majka is making the pace for Tinkoff-Saxo. 11:26 Vincenzo Nibali grabs a bite The Italian picks up an energy bar from his team car and the handover takes a lot longer than it should have, with the Italian getting a wee tow. Back in the yellow jersey group, Froome looks reasonably comfortable, with Nairo Quintana latched on his wheel. The gruppetto containing all the non-sprinters is 16 minutes behind and in danger of missing the cut-off. One suspects the race organisers will take mercy on them if they do so - they can’t throw that many people out of the race with just two days to go.

11:23 Vincenzo Nibali continues to lead He’s 2min 17sec ahead of the yellow jersey group containing Froome, Quintana, Contador, Poels, Sammy Sanchez and others as they plod onwards and upwards towards the summit finish at La Toussuire. Rolland is 1min 05sec behind Nibali. 11:13 15 kilometre to go And every single one of them is uphill. Geraint Thomas has lost over 10 minutes and is plummeting down the GC rankings. Nibali leads the stage by 20 seconds from Pierre Rolland and two minutes from the yellow jersey group, where Wout Poels continues to pedal along in front of Chris Froome, who is having a drink from his bidon and looking fairly comfortable. 11:06 Romain Bardet gets a new bike ... He’s passed by the yellow jersey group as he does so and is now trying to get back into that particular party. A little under two minutes up the road, Nibali and Rolland have begun the climb to La Toussuire. Your humble reporter needs a quick “comfort break” but will be back in five minutes.

Keep yourself amused with this guided Tour of the Sky Death Star while I’m away 11:04 Just 23 kilometres to go ... That’s the good news for the riders. The bad news is that most of them are uphill to La Toussuire. vincenzo Nibali and Pierre Rolland continue their pell-mell descent at breakneck speed, while Romain Bardet remains behind them, hampered by his broken derailleur. He’s 30 seconds ahead of Froome, Nibali, Contador and co. It’s worth noting that, while the Eurosport consensus was that Nibali attacking the yellow jersey group when Froome had his mechanical was purely coincidental, the general consesnsus was that he knew exactly what he was doing. I’m in the latter school of thought, I must say. There’s little or no love lost between Froome and Nibbles. 10:56 Nibali leads from Rolland on the descent ... There’s a gap of a couple of bike-lengths between them. Further back, Romain Bardet raises his hand to signal that he needs mechanical assistance - there’s something wrong with his front derailleur, I think.

He’s still able to zip along, but he’s freewheeeling mostly and in a very, very low gear. He’ll need a bike change once it’s safe to do so. 10:54 Rolland moves ahead of Nibali ... They continue to zip down the descent, but Rolland moves ahead of Nibali, before overcooking another corner and ushering the Italian through. This time he keeps his distance. Behind the pair, Romain Bardet is zooming along, but seems to have mechanical problems - there’s something wrong with his chain. Behind him, Roman Kreuziger has got a puncture in his back wheel, but continues the downhill descent. Heaven help us all - these guys are courageous to the point of pig-stick nutty. Updated 10:51 Nibali catches Rolland Well, I say “catches”, but he sort of cruises up alongside him, reaches out to grab his rival’s arm and seems to instruct him to get on his wheel and follow him down the 16-kilometre descent. This is going to make for thrilling viewing ... through latticed fingers from behind the sofa.

rolland is a much bigger man than Nibali, which means the same racing line might not suit both of them. Almost immediately he overcooks one bend while zooming along at upwards of 50 miles per hour, with his front wheel about six inches behind Nibali’s back wheel. 10:47 Nibali is catching Rolland As he approaches the summit of the Col du Mollard, Pierre Rolland looks over his shoulder to see vincenzo Nibali about 100 metres behind him. Meanwhile back in the yellow jersey group, Romain Bardet, who is the virtual leader of the king of the mountains category on the road, makes a break for some more points. 10:44 Nibali closes the gap to 32 seconds The Italian is closing in on Pierre Rolland, who leads the stage. They’ve a 16-kilometre descent once they crest this particular Col, then an 18-kilometre climb to the finish at La Toussuire. One of the world’s bravest and best descenders, Nibali is likely to have a healthy lead over Rolland and the rest once he begins the final climb.

10:42 37 kilometres to go ... Europcar rider Pierre Rolland continues to pedal his way towards Col du Mallard, his shirt unzipped and his mouth open as he gulps for air. There are about 20 riders in the yellow jersey group, which is 2min 10sec behind, while Vincenzo Nibali is between Rolland and that group, chasing the stage leader. 10:36 Rolland leads the stage ... Vincenzo Nibali is one minute behind him and the yellow jersey group including Froome, Contador and Quintana are a further 1min 30sec behind. 10:35 Some bickering in the yellow jersey group It seems that Chris Froome had a stone caught in his chainring or cassette earlier and now he seems to have become embroiled in some sort of argument with Alejandro Valverde, possibly for attacking him on the descent after Croix de Fer. More on that as we get it. Pierre Rolland makes his way up the Col du Mollard with a 2min 20sec lead over the yellow jersey group and Vincenzo Nibali chasing him down.

After the Col du Mallard, there’s another long descent before the 18 kilometre climb to the finish. Chris Froome, front, with Spain’s Alejandro Valverde speed down the Croix de Fer after the tough climb. Photograph: Christophe Ena/AP Updated 10:28 Peter Connor writes ... “It is worth pointing out that the last 70km of this stage is virtually identical to stage 11 in 2012 ... as won by Pierre Rolland,” he says. Good spot, Peter - Rolland is looking set fair to win this one too, as he barrels down the descent crouched low over his crossbar to create as little wind resistance as possible. Nibali continues to chase him, while Froome, the other GC contenders and their lieutenants are a little over two minutes behind. The 5.7-kilometre long category two Col du Mollard (1,638m) is next on the climbing agenda once they’ve got this descent out of the way. Updated The Chris Froome fan club is out in force Adrien Chantegrelet (@Adrientp) 10:23 Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

The yellow jersey group is on the descent after conquering the Croix de Fer. Alejandro Valverde attacks Froome while travelling at a quite frankly ridiculous lick, but Woet Poels guides his team leader back past the Spaniard. Further up the road, Vincenzo Nibali is chasing stage leader Pierre Rolland as the pair descend at high speed. The road is narrow, many of the turns are tight and Rolland overcooks one corner and comes perilously close to crashing into a car parked outside somebody’s house. Nibali has also gets a kick off a pothole on the outskirts of one mountainside village and has a wobble. Nibali is going unbelievably fast as he chases Rolland. 10:12 Chris Froome regains contact with the group He makes his way through to the front, past Nairo Quintana and Alberto Contador. Nibali has scorched off into the distance and on Eurosport, they’re wondering whether he attacked because he knew Froome had mechanical issues, which would be a poor show, or was in the process of attacking when Froome just happened to have what Sean Kelly to referred to as “probably just a chain-hop”.

The consensus is that it was a coincidence. With Nibali so far behind on GC, it probably doesn’t matter. Pierre Rolland continues to lead the stage by 1min 56sec from the yellow jersey group. Yellow jersey Chris Froome with teammates Richie Porte, right, and Britain’s Geraint Thomas, left. Photograph: Laurent Cipriani/AP Updated 10:09 Chris Froome has a mechanical Something goes wrong with Chris Froome’s chain and he’s briefly forced to unclip from his pedals. It’s nothing too serious, but it affords his rivals the opportunity to get a jump on him and hare off ahead. As he attempts to to get back on the back of his group, a Frenchman runs alongside him to shout abuse in his ear. Further up the road, Vincenzo Nibali has opened a gap on his former travelling companions. 10:05 Alejandro Valverde attacks The Movistar rider grits his teeth and jumps off the front of the yellow jersey group and is followed by Lampre-Merida rider Ruben Plaza Molina, who gets on his wheel.

They open a small gap over the yellow jersey group, which is being led by Chris Froome and - I think - Wout Poels. 09:59 My £5 for today's stage is on Thibaut Pinot He’s just been dropped from the yellow jersey group. Gah! Pierre Rolland is five kilometres from the summit of the Col du Glandon, where he will pick up 25 king of the mountains points before kicking on to the Croix de Fer. Back in the yellow jersey group, Astana continue to set a blistering pace. They’re 2min 05sec behind Rolland. 09:49 Geraint Thomas is struggling ... They Sky rider is going backwards as he’s dropped out of the Froome group. With Richie Porte also struggling, Chris Froome is looking a bit exposed as Astana force the pace at the front of his group. They’re 2min 45sec Pierre Rolland, with a group of 17 riders behind them.

09:47 Some minor action at the front of the yellow jersey group Vincenzo Nibali has ordered his Astana team-mates to up the pace at the front of the Froome/Quintana group and they’ve duly done so. Sky have sent Richie Porte forward to keep an eye on proceedings. They’re now 3min 13sec behind Pierre Rolland, who has attacked off the front of the lead group and opened a gap of over a minute on his former travelling companions. Vincenzo Nibali, right, his Astana team working hard in the breakaway. Photograph: Jeff Pachoud/AFP/Getty Images Updated 09:44 Reader obsession with ... ... the ownership of garish, moisture-wicking synthetic fibres continues. “I appreciate that the overall winners get to keep their prize jerseys, but what about the riders that wear the yellow, polkadot and green in the earlier stages but don’t win overall,” writes James Davison. “Do they get to keep them?” Of course they get to keep them - why wouldn’t they?

The organisers are hardly going to zip some poor bloke into the polka dot jersey at the end of the stage and then demand it back as soon as he gets back to the team bus, are they? [Addendum: If somebody writes in to provide concrete evidence that they actually do this, I will not be publishing their missive in a bid to remain right.] 09:38 Linus Turner is here with more answers “Re the question on twins needing to go at the same time (13.33),” he writes. “I have 2 year old identical twin sons who are in the later stages of potty training at the moment. Whilst the fascination of the potty means that if one goes, the other one almost certainly wants to have a go next (ad infinitum, so that it turns into some sort of never-ending scatalogical version of musical chairs), they definitely don’t necessarily produce the goods at the same time. And given what they can produce on occasions, that’s a crumb of relief.” That’s that one sorted, then. 09:36 Ian Britton writes ... “There are many many yellows,” he says. “The presentation one opens at the back.

Top riders’ teams will have made to measure ready for their men - there were arguments over Froome’s yellow skinsuit (that was made in advance). You also see shots of lots of generic ones been signed for sponsors and others - in our company HQ we have/had a selection (not been for a bit) when we were a team sponsor. Plus some given as prizes etc etc But my kids did ask me to win them a lion - wish I was that good on a bike.” 09:30 Some of those in the breakaway ... Romain Bardet (ALM), Joaquim Rodriguez (Kat), Roman Kreuziger (TCS), Michael Rogers (TCS), Cyril Gautier (EUC), Romain Sicard (EUC), Daniel Teklehaimanot (MTN), Steph Clement (IAM), Steve Cummings (MTN), Nicolas Edet (COF). They’re making their way up the 25 kilometre climb to the Col du Glandon, which immediately kicks upwards to the Col de la Croix de Fer. Behind this breakaway, the yellow jersey group is 2min 37sec behind and rapidly thinning out. 09:24 George Rowland writes ...

“To reply to Christop Wagner,” he begins. “The obvious reason why the yellow jersey only started in 1919 is that it took 16 years of sweat to make it turn it’s trademark yellow.” France’s Romain Bardet is riding so fast today, that he is a blur. Photograph: Jeff Pachoud/AFP/Getty Images Updated 09:22 We have 72 kilometres to go ... Tim Wellens and his team-mate Tony Gallopin have been dropped from the lead group on the lower slopes of the climb to the Col du Glandon. They lead the yellow jersey group by 2min 15sec. 09:20 Another reader rushes to Sheila Marchant-Webb's defence “You quote Sheila Marchant Webb as asking whether the yellow jersey winner KEEPS IT, and you humiliate the poor woman (whom I’ve never met nor previously heard of, so no agenda) by answering a different question (do they get to keep them?)“ writes Liz Poulter. “I have often idly wondered what they do with them all (and also whether the presentation one is recycled when it’s the same winner) which is effectively the same question she asked.

Love the detail about seeing the jersey printed up in the back of a van, though. I did hear Chris Froome say he hoped his yet-to-be-born son liked lions, so I guess he gets a new one of those every day.” OK, fair enough. Perhaps I was a little bit hard on poor Sheila. Well, I would imagine most riders keep their yellow jerseys - Lance Armstrong famously tweeted a photo of seven of them framed on his living room wall when it became apparent he was going to lose them all. I suppose some would donate them to charity or other worthy causes. Incidentally, the bloke I saw printing them off in the back of the van in Liege proceeded to fold them neatly, place them in a satchel and cycle a kilometre down to the finish line, where I presume he handed them over to the pertinent podium hostesses tasked with zipping the winners into them.

With regard to Chris Froome’s unborn child’s fondness - or otherwise - for cuddly lions, Mark Cavendish made the interesting point after winning his stage in this year’s Tour, that his young daughter Delilah is now old enough to understand that if daddy wins a stage, he gets presented with a nice bunch of flowers which he hands over to her. Apparently young Delilah was very upset when he was beaten to the line in Zelande at the end of stage two. 09:00 An email from Sheila Marchant-Webb “Do the riders who earn a yellow jersey keep each one?” she asks. Of course they don’t get to keep them, Sheila. Money on the Tour is so tight that the organisers insist on getting each filthy, sweat-drenched, salt-covered rag back from the owner at the end of each day, so they can run it through the washing machine and hand it on to the next fellow. It’s not widely known, but they’ve been passing around the same tatty yellow jersey for every Tour de France since the race began in 1903. I wouldn’t clean my car with the thing. 08:53 David Green is back and he wasn't being sarcastic ...

“Not sarcastic in anyway,” he says. “A war is won with the final battle and that is when any great leader most needs his lieutenants by his side. Go Team Sky! Outsmarting the rest to be the best!” Hmm ... I’m not so sure I share your point of view, David. Having your lieutenants by your side in the final battle is all well and good, but there’s not a huge amount of help they can provide their great leader happened to crack and lose 15 minutes in their absence in the previous day’s much tougher battle.

Question: Who won the 2015 Tour de France?
Answer: CHRIS FROOME